So-called brassiere wires are well known and comprise a wire which may be independent or part of a frame and which has an arcuate shape, while being received in a correspondingly shaped channel stitched into the fabric of the brassiere to extend along the underside of each brassiere cup, to lie generally against the sternum and lateral pectoral region and to provide support for the breast.
Such brassiere wires are provided in a variety of shapes and configurations and must satisfy a number of requirements. For example, the brassiere wire must not pose danger to the wearer by poking through the fabric to cause injury or to damage clothing of the wearer. It also must be readily insertable.
The wire should tolerate washing and be compatible with the wearer, should not present excessive stiffness, but yet be capable of providing support without permanent distortion or shape change which may result in distortion of the shape of the brassiere.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,306,565, for example, a brassiere wire is disclosed which has encapsulated tips with locking pins extending through apertures in the plastic tip to retain the latter on the wire. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,175,740, a brassiere frame is provided in which two brassiere wires are joined together at sleeve-shaped members at the center of the frame and tips similar to those previously described are provided on the free ends of the wire.
Another underbust flat wire for use below a brassiere cup is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,133,316 and likewise has tips at the ends thereof. Stitching through brassiere frame members is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,702,614.
To avoid the drawbacks of a metallic wire which might poke through the brassiere, U.S. Pat. No. 3,114,374 describes a brassiere stay in which the wire is completely encased in plastic tubing with the ends of the tubing crimped over the ends of the wire.
A breast-enhancement brassiere is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,098,330 and likewise has a wire extending within a channel along and following the curvature of the cup of a brassiere. The cups of a camisole garment can likewise be provided with a wire (U.S. Pat. No. 5,045,018) and, as noted, metallic spring wire has been used to form a stiffening member for a brassiere (U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,650), a portion of this member being annealed to soften it.
A method of making a brassiere wire whereby a sheath of flexible material is formed around a wire member and an end thereof is broken off within the sheath is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,285,113.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,245,644 discloses a brassiere with support providing kinetic energy transfer and U.S. Pat. No. 4,201,220 discloses another brassiere wire having sheathed tips. A tubular wire form inserted into a knit article for a seamless brassiere is the subject of U.S. Pat. No. 3,772,899 whereas the brassiere described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,726,286 encloses underbust wire stays which are secured to lower edge portions and inner and outer layers of the breast cups. Still earlier designs using undercup stays, wires or frames are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,717,154; 3,701,614; 3,599,643; and 3,394,706. (See also U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,252,460; 3,126,007 and 2,109,431.)
Notwithstanding the considerable efforts expended in developing brassiere wires or stays heretofore, it has been found that problems remain with respect to the comfort of a brassiere equipped with a wire or stay, especially when that wire or stay extends above the midway point across the cup. In such cases, comfort problems do arise where the wire or stay is excessively stiff.
Another problem which arises with underwire brassieres is the design and selection of a wire appropriate to the particular curvature of the cup and the length of the compartment of the cup in which the wire is to be received. In the past, the development of a wire specific to a particular cup design and size has been made on an ad hoc basis with the wire having to be molded and reshaped repeatedly for the particular cup or brassiere design.